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Articles by Gary Forger
The Big Picture: New ideas to raise everyone’s game on the job
There’s no getting around it. Workforce development doesn’t get the attention it needs. To begin, the whole matter of finding, training and retaining talent is slippery at best. On a good day, some people go home feeling that they accomplished more than just getting paid. On a bad day, good people give notice that their time within your four walls is over. This story is about what options you have (but may not yet realize you have) to send more people home satisfied more often.
The Big Picture: New ideas to raise everyone’s game on the job
There’s no getting around it. Workforce development doesn’t get the attention it needs. To begin, the whole matter of finding, training and retaining talent is slippery at best. On a good day, some people go home feeling that they accomplished more than just getting paid. On a bad day, good people give notice that their time within your four walls is over. This story is about what options you have (but may not yet realize you have) to send more people home satisfied more often.
Workforce Development: The maintenance tech track
According to Modern’s MRO survey earlier this year, hiring and retention challenges are widespread across the warehousing environment, where nearly half (47%) of respondents say finding capable technicians is somewhat of an issue right now. Some companies are less impacted, with 31% calling hiring and retention a “minor issue” that doesn’t impact operations.
Big Picture: Workforce of the future
Made any of these comments lately? “Nobody wants to work anymore.” “There’s a severe labor shortage out there.” “This generation doesn’t want to work with its hands.” Guilty as charged? Or, have you developed your own twist on this theme? Probably. Generally, these assessments come to the surface when the hunt for new people takes too long or proves way too frustrating. Fortunately, it doesn’t have to be this way. Unless, of course, you insist on finding new people the way you always have.
How Wearables Are Becoming Part of Everyday Warehouse Operations
This story originally appeared in the November 2025 issue of Modern Materials Handling. “Don’t send someone out to dig a ditch with a spoon.” For many life situations, that’s mighty good advice from Ron May, principal engineer at Lucas Systems. But from a supplier of voice-based wearables in today’s warehousing and manufacturing environments, those are words to live by. And after 40 years in the technology industry, May knows.
Do People Still Matter in Today’s Automated Warehouses?
This story appeared in the December 2025 issue of Modern Materials Handling. What’s Related In a world obsessed by automation and AI, it’s a little too easy to overlook people in the warehouse. But not here, today. Instead, we’re going to force the issue. You see, lots of people work in warehouses. More than 1.83 million as of August, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s up from 628,000 in 2010, which was noticeably higher than the 510,000 in 2000.
Big Picture: Do people in the warehouse still matter?
In a world obsessed by automation and AI, it’s a little too easy to overlook people in the warehouse. But not here, today, in Modern. Instead, we’re going to force the issue. You see, lots of people work in warehouses. More than 1.83 million as of August, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s up from 628,000 in 2010, which was up noticeably higher than the 510,000 in 2000. Depending on your viewpoint, that’s quite a positive or negative trajectory.
Best Practices: Wearables at your service
“Don’t send someone out to dig a ditch with a spoon.” For many life situations, that’s mighty good advice from Ron May, principal engineer at Lucas Systems. But from a supplier of voice-based wearables in today’s warehousing and manufacturing environments, those are words to live by. And after 40 years in the technology, May knows.
Spotlight on startups: Driving innovation in materials handling
Lately, it’s been hard not to notice all the startups among materials handling suppliers. There’s even a special recognition of them at the MHI shows. Here, we focus on five startups and what they're doing to make your world not just better but a whole lot easier to live in day to day. Three companies here—Cartken, Freespace Robotics and WareBee—were the three finalists at the ProMat show in March. Clearly, there’s something going on with startups that’s hard to overlook.
The Pallet Report 2025: From Cheez-Its to auto parts, pallets matter
Kellogg ships your favorite Cheez-Its to Walmart. On pallets. Hundreds of Tier 1 suppliers ship automotive parts to Ford. On pallets. Breville ships high-tech toasters to Bloomingdale’s. On pallets. Even petroleum products get shipped to Advance Auto Parts. On pallets. Enough said. Pallets matter. And, knowing the critical role pallets play in warehouses and distribution centers, Modern Materials Handling conducts an annual study to learn more about how companies are procuring and using pallets.
2025 Lift Truck User Survey: Key trends in fleet management, acquisition and electric truck adoption
In most Modern Materials Handling stories, we talk about equipment, technology and their application. But only occasionally do you have a chance to compare your management of that equipment and technology to those of your peers. This month, we’re doing just that with our annual survey about lift truck usage and acquisition. The five key takeaways from the survey are: • Average age of trucks in fleets is steady at 8 to 9 years. • More than 50% of trucks are leased.
Think Big: Go beyond robotic picking
This started as a story about robotic picking. That lasted about 10 minutes. That was when Cailin Radcliffe, vice president of marketing at Berkshire Grey, explained (politely) that picking was the wrong focus. “This is really a story about robotic fulfillment,” she says. And just like the robots we’re talking about, it was time to reorient the story and adjust to conditions on the fly (without the help of AI—more on that later).
The Big Picture: Are humanoids on the horizon in warehouse/DC operations?
Oh, boy. Here we go again. In 2013, Jeff Bezos went on “60 Minutes” to talk about Amazon’s future use of drones to deliver orders to people’s homes. He put a five-year timeline on it. Within just a few months people started talking about having drones deliver packages to their porches. Only trouble was, it never happened, unless in an isolated pilot—and still doesn’t happen a dozen years later. Brace yourself: A new distortion cycle is here. This time it’s with humanoid robots.
How Artificial Intelligence Is Transforming Warehouse Operations and Supply Chain Management
Right now, artificial intelligence (AI) is probably the most misunderstood top-of-mind technology anywhere in the world. And by all indications, that is not going to change anytime soon. Many think AI is a black box of universal truth. However, as recent as four years ago, it was probably not as sophisticated as a 3-year-old. That has changed rapidly, and the technology in general is now about as mature as a typical teenager. Maybe a 20-year-old.
Meet your special-purpose robot
Rewind to early February 2025. Come on in. Sit next to me. We’re at a Modern editorial planning meeting and the next topic is the story about robots for the April issue. “I think we should do something on special-purpose robots.” “You mean something other than an AMR or robotic AS/RS?” “Yeah.” “Can you be more specific?” “Kind of.” And with that, the hunt for special-purpose robots was off and running.
Ergonomics: Time to revisit wearables
Time to suit up. We’re goin’ pickin’. But we’ve got some choices to make before we get out on the floor. Several, actually. On the ergonomic side are exoskeletal suits. This emerging option helps with the heavy lifting. And the suit is fitted to you individually. Your warehouse tailor, so to speak. Then you have a broad range of technologies and form factors for wearable devices that collect and manage data and routes. As a class, they make order fulfillment easier, faster and highly accurate.
A new take on voice-directed picking
The other day, someone asked what’s going on with voice. And vision. In order picking. Wait a minute. Did I miss something along the way? Voice and vision together here? It was time for some calls. Turns out that not only are voice and vision teaming up with bar code scanners to pick items, confirm accuracy and fill orders, but there’s more. Autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) are emerging as a potential component of this new order picking technology cocktail.
The secrets behind cloud warehouse management systems (WMS) success
After more than 35 years, you might think warehouse management systems (WMS) don’t have much new to offer. But, you would be wrong. Here’s why. In a word: cloud. In many ways, the cloud has made WMS what it is today. Cloud has made it much easier to deliver the traditional benefits of WMS faster for fewer dollars. Meanwhile, it’s easy to think WMS capabilities have plateaued. They have not. Don’t be fooled.
One return is not as good as another
Every retailer hates returns, but consumers love the option. Just try taking it away, Mr. Retailer. Online men’s apparel and gear retailer Huckberry knew it had to find a better way to handle returns. “If we don’t solve this challenge, we will hear about it from the customer and see it on our P&L,” says Nick Meister, Huckberry’s vice president of operations.
The latest in lift truck innovations in 2024
With a 512-inch lift height and 5,500-pound capacity, Toyota’s moving mast reach truck increases productivity and operator visibility at full height. The combination of a transparent roof and mast design offers the operator excellent upward visibility with minimal load view obstruction. In addition, the tilting operator compartment allows easy fork tip visibility without requiring head movement by the operator.
The State of Procurement in 2024
When it comes to the state of procurement, perhaps Alexandre Gagnon says it best. “Procurement is fundamental.” It spans everything from “day-to-day purchases to measuring sustainability to future-proofing operations for long-term growth. It’s a wide spectrum of mission-critical responsibilities, spanning all business functions.” Gagnon, by the way, is vice president of Amazon Business Worldwide. Not a bad perch to evaluate procurement in big picture mode.
How AI is Transforming Supply Chain and Warehouse Operations
Right now, artificial intelligence (AI) is probably the most misunderstood top-of-mind technology anywhere in the world. And by all indications, that is not going to change anytime soon. Many think AI is a black box of universal truth. However, as recent as four years ago, it was probably not as sophisticated as a 3-year-old. That has changed rapidly, and technology in general is now about as mature as a typical teenager. Maybe a 20-year-old.
Coming your way: Artificial intelligence
Right now, artificial intelligence (AI) is probably the most misunderstood top-of-mind technology anywhere in the world. And by all indications, that is not going to change anytime soon. Many think AI is a black box of universal truth. However, as recent as four years ago, it was probably not as sophisticated as a 3-year-old. That has changed rapidly, and the technology in general is now about as mature as a typical teenager. Maybe a 20-year-old.
Coming soon to a packing station near you
We all love packages. We’re so in love with packages that 27 million arrive at their destinations in the United States daily, says Statista. Better yet, that number is growing 7% annually. Yes, there’s a future in packages. Those numbers got the attention of Lucas Systems’ chief technology officer Scott Mullins. Especially when he heard that 90% of those packages are manually selected and packed by people. That’s 90%.
Reduce unplanned downtime with preventative maintenance
Let’s face it, as much as any of us would like to think of preventative maintenance as being fairly standard (every month, quarter, year), it’s more complicated than that. And if anything, it’s becoming even less standard. The reasons are many. Start with the constant waves of change in operations these days. They extend from a changing mix of materials handling equipment to a churning workforce and rapid cycling of SKUs. Oh, don’t forget about demanding consumer demand.
60 Seconds With Michael Larsson, Dematic/FIRST Robotics
Michael Larsson Company: Dematic Title: President, Dematic and KION Group Executive Board Member Location: Grand Rapids, Mich. Experience: 32 years at ABB (including 22 at ABB Robotics), three years at Dematic and long-time advocate of the FIRST Robotics program. Modern: Clearly, you’ve been involved in robotics for many years. So much so, there’s even a story going around that your kids got involved with robots in high school. Is that really true? Larsson: Yes, that is a true story.
The latest in lift truck innovations
With a 512-inch lift height and 5,500-pound capacity, Toyota’s moving mast reach truck increases productivity and operator visibility at full height. The combination of a transparent roof and mast design offers the operator excellent upward visibility with minimal load view obstruction. In addition, the tilting operator compartment allows easy fork tip visibility without requiring head movement by the operator.
About those near field communication labels
It’s only occasionally that any of us see something that truly impresses. After all, so much that we once thought was beyond us proves to be commonplace. You can put Zoom calls halfway around the world into this category. So, the other night I was on a Zoom with Saiko Sasha Okamoto of Aioi Systems. She was in Tokyo and I in Boston. Nothing amazing. Yet. We were talking about AIOI’s smart card for labeling totes and rack locations. Then something amazing happened.
Big ideas for lift truck batteries
This started as a story about lift truck batteries. That lasted about 45 seconds. That’s when Damon Hosmer of Raymond said: “Don’t forget about hydrogen.” Lead acid still accounts for probably 80% or more of all batteries. Lithium-ion is moving up to 15% or more. That leaves the balance for hydrogen as a power source. At less than 5%, that’s not a lot, but it’s worth noting. It also offers the chance to start to change the conversation from purely batteries to lift truck power management.
Weighing in with dimensioning systems
Length Heigh Width Weight Four great details to have for every item in every warehouse from storage to shipment. So great, in fact, they are the keys to the kingdom for ensuring optimized storage space use and accurate freight charges. Better yet, the technology to cube, weigh and dimension all items and loads is well within reach. There’s nothing exotic here. But that doesn’t mean its availability is fully appreciated.
Building a process for right sizing shipment cartons
While weighing and cubing systems haven’t yet moved into the fourth dimension, they’re certainly having an impact in three dimensions like never before. As the story in this issue details, weighing and dimensioning systems have moved beyond their traditional role collecting data for freight of all sizes and types. Now, these systems are increasingly used to collect product data to maximize storage capacity and slotting in the DC. Both of those are having a ripple effect.
60 Seconds with Gopi Somayajula, VP, Global Product Development at Hyster-Yale
Gopi Somayajula Company: Hyster-Yale Title: Senior vice president, Global Product Development Location: Portland, Ore. Experience: 24 years with Hyster-Yale in several leadership positions Modern: You were recently the platinum sponsor of the Kellogg Design Challenge competition, hosted by Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management and Segal Institute for Design Innovation. Tell us a bit about it.
Unit load handling redux
Are unit loads still relevant in a world of eaches? Youbetchya! In fact, unit load handling might be even more important now. “It’s all about minimizing the number of touches and integrating reserve storage with order selection processes,” explains Dan Labell, president of Westfalia. And that’s not easy to do inside the four walls of most distribution centers or manufacturing sites.
The story in pallets
So, you’re going to lunch today with your team, and you want to be ready. You know this group, and somebody is sure to bring up the subject of pallets. What are you going to tell them? Don’t worry. Modern has your back. Three words are sure to get you and the conversation going: sustainability, automation and innovation. Better yet, all three are actually interconnected. Who would have thought? But they are. So, stay with us here. It’s actually quite an interesting story with a host of key players.
3 takes on MRO data analytics
Data analytics in maintenance often comes down to three metrics: How often does that (conveyor, lift truck, automated storage system or other essential materials handling piece of equipment) require maintenance? What’s the next date for scheduled maintenance? How much did you spend last year? Yes, you probably have your own top three list. But it’s still a top three list. There has to be a better way to manage MRO. And there is.
The power of strapping
We’re going big here. You know, steel rolls, tubing, piping, cargo containers and everything in between. That’s where heavy-duty strapping comes into play on roads and rail as well as at sea. If any of these loads get loose or come unbundled during transit, they’re going to leave a mark. Or, more likely, many marks. “The headline is protecting products on the move and people from injury,” explains Alex Frueh, marketing manager at Cordstrap USA.
The state of procurement
(Photo: Getty Images) Procurement is transforming faster than ever. Cost, quality, and speed still matter. But now procurement managers are under pressure from one end of the supply chain to the other. As well as from within their own companies. This is going to take some work to tame. Subscribe to our weekly e-mail update Don’t miss out on the best in supply chain. Get premium resources and in-depth, comprehensive feature articles written by the industry's top experts – delivered.
Parcel handling on the move
Keep them moving. Every last one. Boxes. Bags. Envelopes. Big ones. Small ones. Custom-sized ones. Heavy. Light. Everything-in-between. Cardboard. Paper. Plastic. And more of all, including package designs yet to be imagined. Clearly, parcel handling is not getting any easier. Furthermore, expectations of both shippers and consumers are on the rise as delivery windows shrink. Oh, is that all you want? I, of course, am more reasonable. Ok, maybe not all that more reasonable.
An inside look at picking technologies
Unfortunately, we only have 3,600 seconds in an hour. Otherwise, who knows what picking technologies could do with some extra time. But since more seconds is not an option, we need to find other ways to get more done every hour. So, we do. Luther Webb, Trew’s vice president of data science, has a graph in mind. His title should have been a tip off he’d go down this path. Webb immediately goes into an X-Y axis discussion with order velocity on the former and SKU population on the latter.
New packaging idea for the cold chain
Summertime is minutes away. And with summer, the cold chain for transporting popular perishables comes a bit more into focus. Especially if you’re talking about shipment of popular perishables like meat and fruit to eggs and more. Fortunately, Ranpak is a step ahead of all of us with its cold chain protective packaging.
Equipment batteries get a jolt
If you hear some scuffling out in the battery charger room, go take a look. No, it’s not mice. But it might be some of your people with laser tape measures wondering out loud how to better use the space. That is, if your lift truck fleet’s lead acid batteries were replaced by lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries. Really? Yes, it’s a possibility. A very distinct one, actually. Electric lift trucks account for more than 55% of the so-called national fleet.
Autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) on a mission to automate
Rest assured, no matter how many autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) you have already seen, you’ve only scratched the surface. And if that feels a little overwhelming, it’s more than OK. You won’t need therapy. Go back to the early 2000s and all you basically had was Kiva. Remember those pioneering orange bots that carried goods on shelves to pickers? Amazon’s purchase of Kiva did not deter the proliferation of AMRs in manufacturing and distribution. Anything but.
Autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) on a mission
Rest assured, no matter how many autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) you have already seen, you’ve only scratched the surface. And if that feels a little overwhelming, it’s more than OK. You won’t need therapy. Go back to the early 2000s and all you basically had was Kiva. Remember those pioneering orange bots that carried goods on shelves to pickers? Amazon’s purchase of Kiva did not deter the proliferation of AMRs in manufacturing and distribution. Anything but.
Up close and personal with mind twisting special purpose robots
In talking to experts for this article, it became evident that simply saying “special purpose robots” can be a tongue twister. At the same time, it also became evident that the capabilities of this class of autonomous mobile robots is a mind twister, too. (By the way, I’m sure you have by now tested yourself on your verbal dexterity saying—special purpose robots. No one escapes without trying at least once.) “People in supply chain know that autonomous robots are not just the future.
Two voices of reason on pallet materials
In case it snuck up on you, Earth Day this year is April 22. Now, I’m old enough to remember the first Earth Day in 1970. I was a junior in high school. And whether it’s the passage of time or nostalgia, I remember that first Earth Day as an upbeat, positive event. Not one filled with the acrimony and crisis of so many environmental discussions today. By way of example, EarthDay.org, organizer of Earth Day, says this year’s theme is “Planet vs.
Lift Truck Battery Technology Gets a Jolt
If you hear some scuffling out in the battery charger room, go take a look. No, it’s not mice. But it might be some of your people with laser tape measures wondering out loud how to better use the space. That is, if your lift truck fleet’s lead acid batteries were replaced by lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries. Really? Yes, it’s a possibility. A very distinct one, actually. Electric lift trucks account for more than 55% of the so-called national fleet.
Lift truck batteries get a jolt
If you hear some scuffling out in the battery charger room, go take a look. No, it’s not mice. But it might be some of your people with laser tape measures wondering out loud how to better use the space. That is, if your lift truck fleet’s lead acid batteries were replaced by lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries. Really? Yes, it’s a possibility. A very distinct one, actually. Electric lift trucks account for more than 55% of the so-called national fleet.
Be open to change
In the runup to Modex (Atlanta, March 11-14), time is scarce for marketing communications people at exhibitors. But that didn’t dissuade Samantha Goetz from making time for us. Even though her only option was to Zoom in from a UPS counter in a hotel lobby somewhere in San Antonio. While the local color was novel, what Goetz had to say was even more notable.
MRO: Finding and keeping the best technicians
You could say the fever has broken. For the recent past, hiring managers struggled to find and retain maintenance technicians. It’s been the case for lift truck techs and those for automation. And this has not been trivial. But in Modern’s annual maintenance survey, 10% of hiring managers now say they “have a very difficult time hiring and retaining technicians.” A year ago, that number was 20%.
MRO Survey: Finding and keeping the best technicians
You could say the fever has broken. For the recent past, hiring managers struggled to find and retain maintenance technicians. It’s been the case for lift truck techs and those for automation. And this has not been trivial. But in Modern’s annual maintenance survey, 10% of hiring managers now say they “have a very difficult time hiring and retaining technicians.” A year ago, that number was 20%.
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